Rome: After the third round of voting on Wednesday proved indecisive, Italy has moved on to the fourth round of voting to elect a new president.
According to the report, Italian legislators and regional delegates, who make up an assembly of more than 1,000 "grand electors" tasked with choosing the future head of state, have yet to agree on a single candidate. On Wednesday, 412 blank ballots were cast, indicating that reservations over who would be the best candidate to succeed President Sergio Mattarella, whose seven-year tenure ends on February 3.
The two largest coalitions in parliament, the center-left and the center-right, both claimed a larger consensus as their main goal, thus talks inside each alliance and between the two groups' main leaders allegedly increased on Wednesday.
However, from Thursday onwards, the road to resolving the impasse may get easier. Starting in the fourth round, a simple majority, or at least 505 votes, will suffice instead of the two-thirds majority necessary under the constitution in the first three rounds.
In Italy, the president is traditionally a ceremonial person who serves as a counterbalance to the institutional environment. However, in times of widespread political unrest, such as major deadlocks between the administration and the legislature, the function becomes critical.
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